


Here for You

by thebearking



Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Abuse, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Domestic Violence, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Other, Physical Abuse, Reader-Insert, Reader-Interactive
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-07
Updated: 2019-08-07
Packaged: 2020-08-11 05:03:59
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,198
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20148103
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thebearking/pseuds/thebearking
Summary: A short series of drabbles in which you come home after a run-in with your abusive boyfriend.





	1. Steve Rogers/Reader

**Author's Note:**

> the original request: Steve or Bucky finding the reader badly hurt after her boyfriend abused her and she is really scared but he patches her up and takes care of her and scared the boyfriend off? I love your writing. I’ve been all the way through your masterlist like three times
> 
> gender-neutral reader.

Steve tended to wake up at least once every night. He usually went into the kitchen to drink some water, maybe read something, until he felt sleepy again. Oddly enough, you’d been there a few times, watching some show or movie and inviting him to join you. Every time he did, the two of you fell asleep on the couch and awoke to cheeky comments from the rest of the team.

Tonight, he found you in the kitchen, but his smile disappeared when he heard you sobbing. He called your name, and you turned to him. The sight of the dark bruises all over your face made his heart drop.

“Steve...” you murmured. He could see more tears welling in your eyes, and on instinct, he rushed forward, opening his arms to you. You all but fell against him, crying into his chest.

“Who did this to you?” he asked, fighting to keep his voice from hardening.

You sniffled and pulled away, peering up at him with guilt in your eyes. “Steve, he ... He said he’d never lay a hand on me, he promised and he—”

Steve’s nostrils flared. He saw the way you flinched when his face went cold, and he sighed, knowing the last thing you needed was another angry man in front of you. He cupped your chin in his hand, gently turning your head to examine your cheek. He could only imagine how those bruises would look in the morning. He’d never liked that sack of shit boyfriend, something about the way the man leered at you, talked about you like you were a toy, not a person. You’d vented to Steve about your relationship numerous times—the verbal abuse, the gaslighting, the impossible requests and the belittling of your feelings—and he’d wanted nothing more than to yank the man over by the collar and order him to never come near you again.

“Hey,” he said softly, wiping the tears from your face with his sleeve. “Let’s get you cleaned up, yeah? Sooner we get ice on those bruises, the sooner they’ll heal.”

You blinked, then nodded, allowing him to lift you up and set you on the counter. He went to the freezer and retrieved some ice, and when he came back, he found you looking up at him with so much gratitude he almost blushed.

“Listen,” he started, holding out the ice pack to you. “I know you. I know you’re blaming yourself, wondering what’s wrong with you that would make him act out this way. And there’s nothing wrong with you. It’s all him, sweetheart. He’s a goddamn disgrace of a human being.” His hand clenched into a fist at his side. “There’s no excuse.”

You managed a weak smile, wincing when the action strained your cheek. “Thank you, Steve,” you whispered, beckoning him forward. Obediently, Steve came closer, and you kissed his cheek. “This world needs more men like you.”

He grinned, looking down sheepishly. “I try.”

“You do.” You patted his cheek, your smile brightening. “Thanks for helping me clean myself up.”

“Anything for you.” He hesitated, then leaned forward and kissed your forehead. “Anything.”


	2. Bucky Barnes/Reader

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A short series of drabbles in which you come home after a run-in with your abusive boyfriend.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> the original request: Steve or Bucky finding the reader badly hurt after her boyfriend abused her and she is really scared but he patches her up and takes care of her and scared the boyfriend off? I love your writing. I’ve been all the way through your masterlist like three times
> 
> gender-neutral reader.

Truth be told, Bucky had been agonizing over you all night. You had told him that you planned to break things off with your boyfriend that evening. He’d offered to go with you, to ensure the man didn’t try anything, but you’d insisted that while your soon-to-be ex was many things, he wouldn’t lay a hand on you. Besides, he knew you were an Avenger, and you could more than handle yourself.

So Bucky had stayed behind, watched you go, and forced himself to watch terribly superficial yet horribly fascinating reality TV while you were out.

He’d gotten so comfortable, wrapped up in fleece throws, that he’d fallen asleep on the couch. He hadn’t realized his eyes had even slipped shut until he jolted awake at the sound of boots treading across the floor, keys slamming against the counter. He sat up, rubbed his eyes, and found you in the kitchen, leaning over the sink.

“Hey, how’d it go?” he asked, hanging over the back of the couch.

You didn’t turn. “I don’t want to talk about it.”

Bucky’s blood ran cold. He recognized that ragged hitch in your voice. He’d heard it only once before, when you’d lost someone close to you. And he recognized that slump to your shoulders, the way your arms trembled. He leaped to his feet and walked up to you. “Doll, what’s going on? What happened?”

He reached out to your shoulder and you slapped his hand away. “No, Buck, don’t—I don’t want to be touched right now.”

He shrank back from you, stuffed his hands into the pockets of his hoodie. Though your hair hid your face from view, he saw the blood pooling in the sink. He saw the way your hand shook when you turned on the tap, rinsing the red away.

He said your name softly, and you turned. His gasp died in his throat, though he was sure his expression betrayed his shock. Black eye, bleeding lip. He’d seen you this beat up and more after a mission, but knowing this came from a man you’d loved, from a man you trusted...

“Did he do this?” Bucky didn’t realize he was shaking until he heard the tremor in his own voice. “He hit you?”

“I told him I didn’t want to be with him anymore and he ... he lost it, he—”

“No, no, doll.” He stepped forward, then stopped, remembering your request. “You don’t have to tell me, it’s okay.”

You were crying again, breathing quickly in and out through gritted teeth. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry, Bucky, I know you want to help but—”

“No, don’t apologize, not to me, not to anyone.” He reached over, grabbed a washcloth from the rim of the sink, and handed it to you. “There’s ice packs in the freezer. You should get someone in the med bay to take a look at your lip in the morning, okay?” He tried smiling, but it came out as more of a sympathetic grimace.

You sniffed and wiped your tears away with the towel. “Don’t we use this to wash dishes?” you muttered.

Bucky smiled then, a real one, because even though you were beaten and bloodied and betrayed, you still managed to crack jokes. “We’re fresh out of washcloths, actually, I checked.”

You grinned, squeezing the towel in your hands. “Seriously, Bucky, I wish I could hug you right now. I do.”

“It’s alright, sweetheart, I know. Don’t force it. You take all the time you need, okay? I’ll be over there, on the couch.”

You nodded, and Bucky quietly returned to his seat on the sofa. He leaned back and closed his eyes. He heard you shuffle around the kitchen for a bit, and just before he drifted off into sleep, he felt the cushion sink next to him as you curled up at his side. Knowing you trusted him enough to sit beside him, icing your wounds, far from anyone who could hurt you, soothed him enough to finally fall into a fitful slumber.


End file.
